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by Enmuse (Scifiroots)



Category: Harper's Island
Genre: Amnesia, Angst, Gen, Post-Canon, Short, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-02-27
Updated: 2010-02-27
Packaged: 2017-10-07 14:15:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/65933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scifiroots/pseuds/Enmuse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Inspired by smallfandomflsh challenge #24: amnesia</p>
            </blockquote>





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Jimmy had adamantly argued against volunteering for the experimental drug treatment. Admittedly the information provided to the public is shaky, the list of potential side effects is extremely long, and the compensation offered is suspiciously high.

Abby doesn't care about any of this. She lets Jimmy think he's won the argument and persuaded her that his mantra of "Things will get better" is true. She suffers quietly through the next couple weeks thanks to an upped dosage of anti-depressants and a trusted routine that lends an appearance of calm.

Jimmy doesn't tend to work late or spend much time away from the duplex and Abby. If he is away for a time, the upstairs couple agrees to coax Abby into a visit and maybe a little dinner. Even with the agreed-upon check-in, Abby has over an hour gap between Jimmy's usual arrival and the unwanted visitors.

Weeks after their first argument about the treatment, Jimmy has a long day. Abby says goodbye and lets him kiss her cheek, as is their routine. She watches out the window as he gets into the pick-up and drives away. Today instead of putting away her breakfast leftovers, she turns to the table holding the phone, bills, and a notepad. She writes in concise block print her intentions, an apology for keeping him from moving forward with his life, and the number of a cell phone she's bought.

Two hours after Jimmy drove away, Abby calls for a cab to meet her at the end of the block. She picks up her backpack, filled with a few changes of clothes, the new cell and charger, sealed letters she wrote to herself, and her medication.

When she leaves, she locks the door and tucks the key into the mailbox. She walks to the cab calmly with no need or desire to look back. She gives the cabbie the address for her salvation and sits back.

The scientist who meets Abby at the makeshift clinic will explain that "amnesia pill" is too simplistic a term. He will start to go into scientific detail about the drug's process while Abby is supposed to look over the agreement forms. She will glance through them, barely reading as she searches for the many lines she must sign. When she finishes within a matter of minutes, the scientist will stumble to a halt and stare in surprise at the paperwork neatly stacked before him. Abby knows that when he looks, he will see a dead stare in her haunted face. He will hurry things along, wanting to escape the stare and the ghosts behind it trying to escape.

When she closes her eyes it will be the last time she has to think of the name Wakefield. The screams will stop. Blood will no longer stain her hands. She will be lost and confused, but she hopes her letter will convince the renewed Abby that it is better to forget.

She wishes she could erase herself before it all happened.

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